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Alawiyya Sufism and the Sufi: Diffusion and Counter-Diffusion of Swahili Islamic Mysticism in the Lamu Archipelago, Kenya

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Alawiyya Sufism and the Sufi: Diffusion and Counter-Diffusion of Swahili Islamic Mysticism in the Lamu Archipelago, Kenya International Journal of Humanities Social Sciences and Education (IJHSSE) Volume 1, Issue 12, December 2014, PP 1-11 ISSN 2349-0373 (Print) & ISSN 2349-0381 (Online) www.arcjournals.org Alawiyya Sufism and the Sufi: Diffusion and Counter-Diffusion of Swahili Islamic Mysticism in the Lamu Archipelago, Kenya Prof. Tom Olali University of Nairobi, and Visiting Associate Professor in the Division of African Studies, College of International and Area Studies, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, Republic of Korea [email protected] [email protected] Abstract: Sufism plays an important part in the elaboration of the maulidi festival in the Lamu archipelago and contributes to its colourful character. The major thrust of this paper is to seek and discuss orthodoxy and those seeking more enthusiastic ways to express their faith centre on mysticism in Islam, what is called Sufism in the Lamu archipelago. Pouwels points out that the brotherhood in East African coast (the tariqas) went alongside the maulidi as a useful vehicle of expression (1987:4). It discusses at length the contribution of a leading Lamu Sufi Habib Swaleh Jamal al-Layl. This paper is premised on Trimingham‟s discussion of maulidi in the context of Sufism and holds the view that the various Sufi movements are largely responsible for the growth of Muslim liturgy after the process of establishing accepted rituals had been completed in the first few years after the death of the Prophet. Trimingham points out that little description of Sufi practice has survived in the literature, and that instead, most references either defend it or condemn it without elaboration (1971:207-217). This paper is concerned mainly with the diffusion of Alawiyya Sufism into the Lamu archipelago which has not been well documented unlike other parts of Africa. How was it diffused and who are those countering this diffusion? The paper seeks to establish arguments and counter arguments of the proponents of the maulidi and the ideology of the sufis in the Lamu archipelago. Keywords: Sufism, Sufi, maulidi, dhikr, tariqa, kasida, sharif, bid‟a 1. INTRODUCTION Pouwels makes a general observation that in the nineteenth-century, extensions of commercial involvement into African interior and the contact with the Arabs brought opportunities by people involving themselves with maulidi or religious brotherhoods (1987:4). Pouwels adds that the real future of Islam in East Africa lay with the tariqas since they provided an alternative system of instruction in the Islamic sciences and Arabic literacy (ibid: 5). Hiskett points out an example from Africa by saying that Sufism is popularly supposed to have been introduced into Hausaland by the North African scholar and Islamic missionary, Muhammad b. Abd al-Karim al-Maghili, who flourished during the late fifteenth and early sixteenth century (1975:73). He postulates that it is more likely that the spread of Sufi ideas in the Sahara and the Sudan was one aspect of the general diffusion of Islamic culture spreading out from both North Africa and Egypt at this time. Tradition records the names of certain personalities, near-contemporaries of al-Maghili, who were teachers of Sufism, such as, for instance, a certain Aqib b. Abdullah al-Ansammuni, a scholar who lived in the Saharan centre of Ahir during the first half of the sixteenth century (ibid). The Sufi in Morocco have participated actively in the festivities of the Prophet‟s birthday, which came to be considered in the hierarchy of festive days second only to the canonical feasts, that is, the Id al-fitr at the end of Ramadan, and the Id al-adha, the feast of sacrifices during the pilgrimage to Mecca (Schimmel 1985:146). According to the Encyclopaedia of Islam, “everywhere, the characteristics of such celebrations are more or less the same: Crowds gather for one or more days, a fair of varying size and importance accompanies the religious celebrations, dhikrand / or Quran reading sessions take ©ARC Page 1 Prof. Tom Olali place inside and /or outside the sanctuary of the saint concerned, one or more processions are held in which the keeper of the sanctuary (often the saint‟s descendants) and (frequently) Sufi orders participate and the cloth covering the Saint‟s shrine is replaced by a new one in the course of the celebration. Frequently, communal meals are staged and a centrally organised distribution of alms takes place” (1991:896). 2. METHODOLOGY The nature of the available sources (local chronicles and religious writings, accounts by Arab geographers and travellers, and some oral traditions) allowed insight into the discussions of this paper. They formed the basis of historical data. A descriptive survey research design using a sample of twenty respondents comprising of imams, madrassa teachers and residents of Lamu, Siyu and Pate was used to execute the study. Questions were asked regarding the sufi and Sufism. The main tools for data collection were questionnaires for the residents of Lamu, Siyu and Pate which were purposively selected from the archipelago and personal interview schedules by imams and sharifs. Te interview data was transcribed, organized, coded, categorized, and analyzed. The coding procedures was to pull the data together to present concepts and themes regarding the data. The quantitative data from questionnaires was analyzed descriptively while the qualitative data from interviews was managed through thematic techniques. 3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION On his part, Boyd observed that religious leaders in Lamu who deny any connection between their ritual practices and Sufism give the same reasons. “They consider Lamu to be a centre of orthodox Sunni belief and practice,and wish to separate themselves from any accusation of innovation” (1980: 52). After attending the Lamu maulidi, I observed that its nature is deeply embedded in Sufi traditions. In the Lamu archipelago, some sharifs made a claim that they were Sufi.Sharifs are highly regarded and occupy higher positions as leading teachers, while others are put in charge of large mosques. The Riyadha Mosque and College is an example of a large mosque whose leadership is derived from the descendants of a sharif. The observation made in the Encyclopaedia of Islam has a close parallel with the maulidi festival in the Lamu archipelago in terms of the number of days crowd gather, dhikriand Quran memorization contests (musabaka). Musabaka is a term used in the Lamu archipelago. It is also interesting to note that Swahili people of the Lamu archipelago gather outside the tomb of a local saint, al-HabibSwaleh and that his descendants are the keeper of his sanctuary. In addition, a cloth covering al-Habib Swaleh‟s tomb is usually replaced by a new one during each maulidi festival. He is regarded as a leading sufi in the archipelago. In the Lamu archipelago, there are those who argue against Islamic mysticism. But indeed few people are in opposition, a subject I discuss at length in a separate section in this chapter. Massignon argued that opposition to Sufism in the early centuries of Islam was based on the heterodox implications of mysticism, “ that the intention is more important than the act, that practical example (sunna) is better than strict letter of the law and that obedience is better than observance”(1953:580). In the Lamu archipelago, the participation of the Sufi during the maulidi festival was almost seen as a duty. It was like the right path to follow. They knew that they were performing what was required of them. It will be seen in the light of what Trimingham describes the ritual practices of Sufism as “ a way, a rule of life” that enables the follower to purify his self and thus to attain closer union with God (1971:197). Shah, a leading authority on Sufism, agrees with this description, although he believes that the way is not exclusively restricted to Muslims. He says: The Sufi is an individual who believes that by practicing alternate detachment and identification with life, he becomes free. He is a mystic because he believes that he can become attuned to the purpose of all life. He is a practical man because he believes that this process must take place with normal society. And he must serve humanity because he is part of it. (1964:26) International Journal of Humanities Social Sciences and Education (IJHSSE) Page 2 Alawiyya Sufism and the Sufi: Diffusion and Counter-Diffusion of Swahili Islamic Mysticism in the Lamu Archipelago, Kenya This seems to have been the case elsewhere. In a study of the Hamadsha in Morocco carried out by Crapanzano (1973), the Hamadsha order recruited members from the lower classes while the leadership is derived entirely from descendants of the founders-the sharifs. Salama, the founder of the Hamadiya was a sharif, while, on the other hand, the founder of the Sanusiya was actively opposed by the sharifs of Libya, who resented popular movements, which distracted the common people from venerating sharifs as a source of divine blessing (Pritchard 1949:3). During the entire period of the Lamu maulidi festival, the Sufi often used dhikri for further edification. Trimingham uses “recollection” as a translation for dhikri, saying that the practice of repeating the names of God “is solidly based on the Qur‟anic injunction „Remember God with frequent remembrance and glorify Him morning and evening” (1971:194). Gellner states that the Sanusiya and Hamadiya brotherhoods use dhikri in connection with celebration of maulidi(1972:47). In both cases, the reference is not only to the celebration of the birth of the Prophet himself, but also to the celebration of the birthdays of the founding saints of the orders. The saints, both living and dead, play an important role in the lives of the Sufi and of ordinary individuals.
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